Addressing persist behaviour

Session overview:

This session you will explore:

Why are consequences or sanctions important?

How to issue consequences or sanctions effectively

• Consistent
• Depersonalised
• Deferred

Identifying the appropriate consequences or sanctions

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Approximate session length: 50 minutes

Why are consequences or sanctions important?�

A consequence or sanction is used to reinforce the behavioural expectations that you set in your classroom and communicate shared values that improve both classroom and school culture.

How to issue consequences effectively�

When issuing consequences, it is important to ensure disruption to learning is minimised and you try to maintain pupil-teacher relationships. Some ways you could do this is to ensure your consequences are:

• Consistent
• Depersonalised
• Deferred

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�1. Consistent

Issuing consequences consistently

• As soon as you ignore or respond differently to a negative behaviour, pupils will be unclear about your expectations. 

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Delivering consequences consistently

• Issuing consequences consistently is important but it is equally important that you follow through with them. 

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1. Consistent

Listen to Tom Bennett discuss this in more detail and make notes on the following questions:

• Why is consistency important?
• Why is it important to be consistent with the whole school community?
• How can you ensure you demonstrate consistency in your behavioural expectations?

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eXlJz11L-hI&feature=emb_title

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�2. Depersonalised

This has several benefits:

• It is least intrusive as it refocuses the learning quickly by naming the negative behaviour and therefore encouraging the pupil to correct this
• It helps to maintain positive relationships with your pupils and establish a supportive and inclusive learning environment because you are labelling the behaviour as negative rather than the pupil themselves
• It gives the opportunity to model courteous behaviour that you would expect from pupils by demonstrating how to speak to individuals in a respectful way

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�2. Depersonalised

Non-example

• “You just can’t listen, can you? Move your card down.”
• This labels the pupil, not their behaviour. This may have a negative impact on the pupil’s self-esteem and may make them more likely to think they can’t achieve and thus ‘give-up’. It may also be damaging to your relationship with this pupil as it doesn’t help to create a respectful and trusting learning environment and doesn’t take the pupil’s feelings into consideration.

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�2. Depersonalised

Example

• “James, you’re talking, I’m moving your name down. Look this way like I know you can. Thanks.”
• This labels the negative behaviour (talking) not the pupil, and gives them a solution for how to get back on track. It is also much more positive. Below are the key features that make this example successful:
• Names the pupil so there is no uncertainty around who the teacher is addressing (James)
• Identifies the negative behaviour so the pupil knows why they are receiving a consequence (you’re talking)
• States the consequence (I’m moving your name down)
• Ends positively and assumes respectful cooperation (Look this way like I know you can. Thanks)

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�3. Deferred

• The defining feature of a deferred consequence is that it places ownership on the pupil by giving them the option to follow your instructions or face a more severe consequence later.

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• Unlike the quick correction you might use to correct a behaviour first time round, a deferred consequence is more serious and will take place later – for example at break time, lunch time, or after school.

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�3. Deferred

Example

• If you have already asked a pupil to put their phone away two times and they still haven’t, you would give them the choice to do this or face the consequences of not doing this. To issue this deferred consequence, you might say:
• “If you choose not to put the phone away, I’ll have to ask you to stay back after class.”

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Issuing a consequence in action

Watch a video of a teacher giving a pupil a consequence in your phase. Consider the following questions and record your response:

• How is the consequence delivered?
• Consistent
• Depersonalised
• Deferred
• What impact does this have on the pupil’s and their peers’ learning?

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ihjfhfkr0uo&feature=emb_title

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6CaEyn3_HoY&feature=emb_title

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�Reflection

Think of a time when you have issued a consequence to a pupil and consider the following questions. Record your reflection in your notepad.

• How did you issue the consequence?
• What impact did this have on the pupil’s and their peers’ learning?
• Thinking about what helps to make delivering consequences effective (consistent, depersonalised, deferred), what might you do differently next time and why?

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�Identifying the appropriate consequence or sanction

• Knowing the appropriate consequences or sanctions to give for a certain behaviour can be tricky as behaviour is context specific and arises for a multitude of reasons, meaning no two situations are the same.
• It is important to develop an understanding of how to deal with challenging situations that may occur in your classroom so you can respond quickly to behaviour or bullying that threatens emotional safety. 

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�Early Years challenging behaviour case study

Pupil background

• Pupil A is in Reception. He hasn’t been to a nursery prior to attending Reception. He joined at the beginning of the year. He doesn’t have a mother but lives with his dad and two older brothers who attend the same school. His dad engages with school when he can. He works shifts so sometimes is unavailable to speak to at the beginning or end of the day. When this happens, his sister collects his children from school. His dad is concerned about his son’s behaviour and regularly asks for ways to support his son both at school and at home.

The incident

• Pupil A occasionally demonstrates aggressive behaviour. In the past, he has thrown items in the classroom such as pencils or building blocks but has never harmed another pupil until this incident. He was exploring Numicon in the sandpit in the outdoor learning area. Another pupil came over to join him. Immediately, Pupil A shouted “No” and then threw the Numicon piece at that child’s face and bit his arm leaving a bruise.

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�Primary challenging behaviour case study

Pupil background

• This pupil is in year 6. He joined the school halfway through year 4 and comes from a challenging background. His parents are separated and have been for the duration of his time at our school. Both parents hold very different views on behaviour and as a result have different expectations of their child which can confuse him as it muddles the boundaries we try to set at school. His mother is approachable and willing to try and support him in school but often makes excuses for his lack of engagement or disruptive behaviour, often blaming the lesson for not being engaging or challenging enough for him, whereas their father is very strict and holds extremely high expectations of him. He sees his father every other weekend and I always notice a difference in his behaviour after spending time with his father. I have no contact with his father as his mother is his primary carer. He has very low self-esteem and resilience.

The incident

• The pupil regularly demonstrates challenging behaviour across a range of settings throughout the day. On one occasion, I was teaching long division, explaining the steps and asking pupils to attempt further questions on their whiteboards. Whilst I was teaching, I could see he was not tracking me or following my explanation. When asked to complete examples on his whiteboard, he rested his head on his arms and ignored my request.

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�Repairing and rebuilding relationships

Listen to Tom Bennett talking about the importance of repairing relationships and holding restorative conversations to improve pupils’ behaviour. Whilst watching the video, consider the following questions and make notes in your notepad:

• Why is it important to hold restorative conversations – what are the three key messages you can convey during these?
• When is the best time to hold restorative conversations?

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ktEzi6NO30k&feature=emb_title

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�Reflection

Think about an occasion when you think a consequence or sanction might have impaired your relationship with a pupil. Consider the following questions and record your reflection in your notepad:

• Why do you think this interaction impaired your relationship?
• What did you do to address this and why was this effective/ineffective?
• What might you do differently next time?

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